Means for closing shot-holes in war-ships



No. 6II,593. Patented Sept. 27, |898.

I. MACDIJNALD.

MEANS FOR CLOSING SHOT HOLES IN WAR SHIPS.

(Application tiled Aug. 23, 1897.)

(No ModeI.)

7 OO c 6 Witnesses m Perm@ ce. PNoTuLrrno.. WASHING-rch, o4 c4 No. 6||,593. Patented Sept. 27, |898;

I. MACDUNALD. MEANS FUR CLOSING SHUTHULES IN WAR SHIPS.

(Applicatipn Bled Aug. 23, 1897.)

(No Model.)

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titten nitrates @Artiest Citron.

`T SALIAII'lidACDONALD, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

MEANS FOR OLOSiht'Si SHOTNHCLES EN W'ARHSt-HPS.`

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 611,593, dated September 2'?, 1898.

Application niet August' 2s, 18er.

. citizen o f the United States, residing at San tion, is poured into the space.

Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in the llulls of War Ships, of which the following is a specification. The object of my invention has been to provide a stuffing for the sides of ships, to be interposed between the inner casing of the side and the outer plates thereof, which shallautomatically close any shot-holes made therethrough and render the Vsame water-tight- In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a perspective view of a war-ship protected with my improved stuffing. Fig. 2 is a verticalV transverse section of a side of the ship. Fig. 3 shows the saine as it appears after being pierced by shot, and Fig. et is a horizon'- tal section of the side. v

l represents the outer plates of the ship, 2 the inner casing, and 3 the stuliing. Said stutiing comprises a mixture of loose iibrous material 4, as hemp, with tar 5 and a number of wooden balls G interspersed in the hemp at substantially uniform distances from each other.

In making use of. my invention the space between the inner casing and the outer plates is first filled as far as practicable with the hemp fiber, unspun or loose, the balls being at the same time laid regularly therein, and

then the tar, heated to a freely-liuid condi The tar will lill up the remainder of the space not occupied by the hemp and balls. Tvlfhen the tar is cooled to its normal temperature, it will assume a viscous condition suitable for the purpose described. lf now the outside of the vessel is pierced by a shot, the hemp and tar will immediately begin to flow into the aper- YSerial No. 649,268. *(No model.)

ture so made along with the Water and will fill the same before a considerable quantity of water has passed therethrough, as shown at 7 in Fig. 3.

The balls will be made sufciently large to stop holes made by shot of the class-of wart vessels which the vessel using the invention would contend against, and the manner in which the balls assist in stopping the holes made by the shotis illustrated at 8 in Fig. 3, where it is seen that the ball is partly forced into the hole and with the hemp and tar renders the same Watcr-tight.

The oil-tar which l prefer to use is that obtained from the oil-wells at Los Angeles and elsewhere in the State of California. It somewhat resembles coaltar, flows freely when hot, but when used in the manner described and reduced to normal temperature remains viscous for any length of time.

l claiml. A ship having its sides provided with ing ner and uterwalls, and a stuiing therebetween of loose unspun fibrous material and a sufficient proportion of tar intermingledv therewith to flow when the side of the ship is pierced and to carry the brous material into the hole to close the same, the inner and outer.

walls being spaced sufciently apart to permit the tar and fibrous material carried thereby to flow between said walls, substantially as described.

2. A stuffing for the sides of ships, consisting of loose fibrous' material, tar, and ballsof wood or the like material, substantially as specified.

lSAL/lll MACDONALD.

Ttlfitnesses:

T. S. OBRIEN, DAVID WELLS. 

